The Cupertino Courier

Community

Schools provide a canvas for local sign artist's vision

By Erin Hussey

When Art Works owner and artist John Espinola graduated from San Jose State University in the early '70s, he wondered how he was going to make a living as a painter.

But after a friend asked him to create a sign, Espinola soon found the perfect career.

"I never set out to be a sign maker," says Espinola, who, in addition to his hand-painted, custom-designed signs that can be seen throughout Santa Clara County, continues to create murals, paintings and stained glass.

"I just knew that I was an artist and that's what I was meant to do."

More than 20 years after he completed his first sign, Espinola began getting commissions to do a new style of sign.

"Schools wanted a way to announce their awards," says Espinola, referring to the California Distinguished School and Blue Ribbon School awards given to schools for academic excellence.

"It's a way to show school pride.''

Leigh High School in San Jose was the first to ask Espinola to paint a California Distinguished School design on one of its building walls.

"Then one school led to another and pretty soon I had done 50 schools," Espinola says.

In addition to painting the award logos, Espinola has been commissioned to paint school mascots and names on gym floors, scoreboards, signs and walls.

"They are all unique and different and have their own special things I like about them," says Espinola, who estimates he has done more than 90 school projects.

"What's neat about it is that it's given me a lot of freedom. Usually most businesses won't allow much creativity. Either they have a particular logo or they aren't too adventurous. In the school's case, they kind of say, 'We have a big wall, what can you do?' So then I cut loose."

The Cupertino Union Elementary School District had commissioned Espinola to do projects at Cupertino, Hyde and Kennedy middle schools. His most recent project took him to Lawson Middle School.

Espinola painted "Lawson Middle School," along with a flashy, silver lightening bolt on the exterior wall of the school's event center.

"I modified the colors a little bit and added three-dimensional effects to make it pop off the walls better, but for the most part it was their design," says Espinola.

The sign, which used oil-based enamel paint, was completed by Espinola and his friend, Guido Nagle, in less than a week.

"We have had nothing but great comments from a variety of people," says Mike Cellini, assistant principal at Lawson.

"We talked to some kids and they said, 'Everyone thinks we are just part of the district buildings; people don't even know it's a school here.'"

Espinola provides each school with a hand-painted miniature mock-up before he starts a job.

"There aren't too many sign companies who are willing and able to paint because they have gone so computerized," Espinola says.

"I wouldn't say there isn't anyone else out there doing signs by hand, but the painting skills that it takes to do this have become somewhat of a dying art. It's a unique business."

For more information about Art Works, call 408.379.6002 or visit www.artworksbyjohn.com.